The Romance of Names Part 8

Walter de Ibernia

Ireland

A much more common name than Scotland, which has been squeezed out by Scott (Chapter XI).

Matilda filia Matildae

Mawson (for Maud-son), Till, Tilley, Tillett, Tillotson, etc.

One of the favourite girl-names during the surname period (Chapter X).

Ralph Vouler.

Fowler

A West-country p.r.o.nunciation; cf. Vowle for Fowell, Vokes for Foakes (Chapter VI), Venn for Fenn, etc.

John filius Thomae.

Thompson, Tompkins, Tomlin, etc.

One of the largest surname families. It includes Toulmin, a metathesis of Tomlin. In Townson and Tonson it coalesces with Tony, Anthony.

Henry Bolle.

Bull.

In this case evidently a nickname (Chapter I).

Roger Gyle.

Gill.

For names in Gil- see Chapter VI. The form in the roll may, however, represent an uncomplimentary nickname, "guile."

Walter Molendarius.

Miller, Mellen, Milner.

In Milne, Milner, we have the oldest form, representing Vulgar Lat.

molina, mill cf. Kilner, from kiln, Lat. culina, kitchen. Millard (Chapter XIX) is perhaps sometimes the same name with excrescent -d.

Thomas Berker.

Barker.

A man who stripped bark, also a tanner. But as a surname reinforced by the Norman form of Fr. berger, a shepherd (Chapter XV).

Hundred Rolls

Modern Form

Matthew Hedde.

Head.

Sometimes local, at the head, but here a nickname; cf. Tate, Tail, sometimes from Fr. tete (Chapter XIII).

Richard Joyet.

Jowett, Jewett.

A diminutive either of Joy or of Julian, Juliana. But it is possible that Joy itself is not the abstract noun, but a shortened form of Julian.

Adam Kyg.

Ketch, Beach

An obsolete adjective meaning lively (Chapter XXII).

Simon filius Johannis Nigelli.

Johnson, Jones, Jennings, etc.

The derivatives of John are numerous and not to be distinguished from those of Joan, Jane (Chapter X).

The above lists ill.u.s.trate all the simpler ways in which surnames could be formed. At the time of compilation they were not hereditary.

Thus the last man on the list is Simon Johnson, but his father was John Neilson, or Nelson (Chapter X), and his son would be ---- Simpson, Sims, etc. This would go on until, at a period varying with the locality, the wealth and importance of the individual, one name in the line would become accidentally petrified and persist to the present day. The chain could, of course, be broken at any time by the a.s.sumption of a name from one of the other three cla.s.ses (Chapter I).

CHAPTER III. SPELLING AND SOUND

"Do you spell it with a V or a W?" inquired the judge.